The National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET) empowers special education teachers, advocates, and professionals with practical training, trusted resources, and meaningful connections - supporting those who make a difference in the lives of students with diverse learning needs.
Happy Friday! Here’s to a relaxing fall weekend! Here is the news you may have missed this week.
Washington stayed busy this week. Former Education Department employees say the agency is withholding more than 1,000 documents about how its layoffs were planned, even as the department hands states a new decision-making playbook that Georgia piloted on retaining special educators. The House passed a bipartisan bill that would make the science of reading a priority in federal literacy grants, a new federal school choice program could grow large enough to rival Title I or IDEA, leaders of 18 states urged federal officials not to scale back community-based services for people with disabilities, and SSI and Social Security benefits are expected to rise.
In states and districts, Seattle teachers settled a contract where special education programs were the key sticking point, Texas rolled out a plan to include more young children with disabilities in classrooms despite a shortage of trained specialists, and New York City's mayor sued the city council over $10,000 bonuses for paraprofessionals. Families of students with disabilities are also finding that private school vouchers come with a catch, with thousands of Texas students handing theirs back, while parents in Boulder, Colorado rewrote their district's rules on autism therapy in school.
In practice and research, parents are now bringing AI to IEP meetings, and a wireless brain implant let a woman communicate in real time just by imagining speech. Reading scores for younger students may finally be rebounding, recovering 15 to 33% of pandemic learning loss depending on grade. New studies also examine whether the characteristics tied to ADHD and autism diagnoses have shifted over time, how deaf adults' brains rewire to sharpen peripheral vision, and which genetic variants are linked to co-occurring conditions in autistic individuals.
SlackBoards Help Kids Focus, Regulate and Learn
Most of us were taught that learning means sitting still. But for many children with special needs, stillness works against them. The vestibular system, which governs balance and spatial awareness, connects directly to the circuits regulating focus and readiness to learn. The right movement input shifts the nervous system into a calmer, more organized state that supports concentration. The SlackBoard was built on exactly this principle. Exceptional Edge Readers save 20% with code NASET
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Hello from the NASET Break Room - our quick pulse check on the state of special education based on trending posts and questions we saw online this week.
Last Week:
Have you ever been pressured to deliver grade-level instruction to a student whose IEP clearly called for something different?
Yes, regularly - and it creates real conflict 😤 (35%)
Do you talk to your nonspeaking students throughout the day even when they can't respond with speech?
Yes, always - I presume they understand more than we know 💬 (91%)
Has your district issued any guidance on how AI tool restrictions apply to students with disabilities?
No guidance at all - we're figuring it out ourselves 😤 (49%)
How do you feel heading into most IEP meetings?
Prepared but always a little anxious 😬
Dreading it - the legal and relational stakes feel enormous 😤
Confident - I've got my process down 💪
It depends entirely on the family 🔄
Have you ever had a student resist or refuse pull-out services?
Yes, regularly - stigma is a real barrier 😔
Yes, occasionally 👀
Rarely, but I've sensed resistance even when they comply 🤔
No, my students generally accept the support ✅
Do you have materials translated for the non-English-speaking families on your caseload?
Yes, for everything that goes home 📋
For some things but not consistently 🤔
I rely on translation services but it's not seamless 😬
This is a gap I know we haven't solved 😔
Fall Webinars at NASET
🧩 Tuesday September 22nd at 7pm EST: Unlocking Communication:
What 40+ Years of Autism Research Tells Us About Minimally Verbal Students Join a pioneer in the field, Dr. Helen Tager-Flusberg, Professor Emerita in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Boston University and Director of the Center for Autism Research Excellence who has led the research answering the questions educators ask every day: How does language actually develop in children with autism? What predicts whether a minimally verbal student will gain spoken language? And what does the evidence say about how to support communication when speech is limited?
👩💻 Register Today | Free for NASET Members🧠 Wednesday October 21st at 7pm EST: Regulate, Relate, Reason:
Dr. Bruce Perry's Neurosequential Model for Educators Join Dr. Katie Lohmiller and Halley Gruber, Program Directors of the Neurosequential Model in Education at The Neurosequential Network, founded by Dr. Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D., whose work with Oprah Winfrey in "What Happened to You?" brought trauma-informed thinking to millions. They will answer the questions special educators face every day: How do stress and trauma shape a student's developing brain? Why can't a dysregulated student access learning, no matter how strong the instruction? And what does the Regulate, Relate, Reason sequence look like in real classroom moments, from responding to concerning behaviors to IEPs, behavior plans, and partnering with families?
👩💻 Register Today | Free for NASET Members
From the NASET Vault
➡️ Classroom Management Series: Cultivating a Positive Classroom Environment
⬇️ NASET Support Squad Downloads of the Week Understanding Alternative Assessments and Access Points and Differentiating Grade-Level Standards for Students on Access Points Scroll down to instantly download ⬇️
FEDERAL POLICY & OVERSIGHT
STATES & DISTRICTS
PRACTICE & TECHNOLOGY
RESEARCH & HEALTH
Our Sponsor
Transition planning transforms when you center deaf student strengths.
NDC shares four deaf-informed strategies to help educators support access, self-advocacy, mentorship, and future pathways. Explore practical tools, Deafverse, and free professional development to help deaf students thrive in college, careers, and life after high school. 👉 Learn from NDC
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The "Just Right Challenge"
Some movement tools rev kids up, working against you. The SlackBoard does the opposite. Its low-amplitude, rhythmic motion calms and organizes the nervous system; what occupational therapists call the "just right challenge." Rooted in Dr. A. Jean Ayres' sensory integration work, it delivers enough input to engage sensory-seeking, under-responsive, or chronically dysregulated children without tipping them into overwhelm. For these kids, the right input can be transformative. Exceptional Edge Readers save 20% with code NASET
Shout Out to Last Week’s Winners Who Correctly Answered, “Stop all services.” View the winners list here!
This Week's Question:
What is the federal statute of limitations for filing an IDEA due process complaint?
Correctly answer 3 or more trivia questions each month to be eligible for a gift card! We had 22 winners in August!
What’s one special ed resource you wish existed? Reply to this email and let us know!
Getting Stated with the SlackBoard
Bringing the SlackBoard into your classroom, clinic, or home? Start with the SlackBoard PLUS model with two lines, the recommended setup for anyone just beginning to integrate it. The motion is small, rhythmic, and regulatory rather than alerting, so students can use it during instruction, not just breaks. Watch a short demo of how to begin. Exceptional Edge Readers save 20% with code NASET
“Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other.”